Leadership of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP), under Senator Ahmed Makarfi, has described President Muhammadu Buhari’s fight against corruption as nothing but noise orchestrated to kill democracy in the country.The PDP also said that, through its previous governments, it laid the foundation and commenced the real fight against corruption in Nigeria through the creation and sustenance of all the anti-graft institutions operating in the country today.
The National Publicity Secretary of the Party’s National Caretaker Committee, Dayo Adeyeye, stated in Abuja while recounting some of the failures of the APC led federal government in the past two years.
According to him, under the PDP administrations most of those who were tried by the anti-graft agencies were PDP members; stressing that the Party never made any effort to shield its members from prosecution and investigation as is the case with the APC government.
He said that President Buhari’s ‘hype in corruption chase’ has left sour taste on the tongues of most Nigerians given the dishonesty and charade that has characterized the actions of his government so far.
Adeyeye added that Nigerians and the international community have lost confidence in INEC under the APC due to alleged loss of integrity and independence it demonstrated in the conduct of gubernatorial elections in Edo, Ondo and Bayelsa states and other subsequent elections.
The Party spokesman further said that the public will agree that the PDP left a stronger Judiciary which the APC is discrediting with impunity through the flouting of court orders at will.
He said: “Beginning with the issue of corruption in this discussion is critical in line with the APC/President Buhari’s ‘Change Agenda’ and ‘hype in corruption chase’ which has left sour taste given the dishonesty and charade that has characterized the actions of this Government so far.
“For the record, ‘corruption’ is endemic in our system since the Military era and using it to weep citizens’ sentiments is absurd while playing ignorant of honest achievements made by PDP Governments to combat this alarming menace.
“The Question is what has the APC done to fight corruption? Nothing! Yes indeed nothing except noise, hounding, torturing, flouting of court orders and vilification of opposition leaders and members in and out of courts/incarcerations without proving anything; harassment, intimidation, indiscriminate arrests and detention of Judges in order to cow them to desecrate the Judiciary and deny the people justice; promote Gestapo State and by extension, kill democracy.
“On the much celebrated anti-corruption fight of the APC therefore, it must be noted that it was previous PDP governments that created and sustained all the institutions for fighting corruption such as the EFCC and the ICPC.
“Under the PDP administrations most of those who were tried by these agencies were PDP members. The PDP never made any effort to shield PDP members from prosecution and investigation as is the case with the APC Government which has made it a policy to sweep all the dirt of its members under the Carpet.
“Instead of entrenching transparency and accountability in governance processes, the APC’s recent ‘Whistle Blowing Policy’ for instance, appears to be a mockery of the System given the reprehensible and comic actions so far under it by finding ‘orphaned monies’ in all nooks and cranny of the Country by the EFCC.
“Electoral process – Nigerians and the international community have lost confidence in INEC under the APC by not allowing it to perform its statutory functions without interference as an unbiased Umpire but instead, functions as its department which was evident in the negative Conduct of Gubernatorial Elections in Edo, Ondo and Bayelsa states and other subsequent elections where it demonstrated loss of integrity and independence.
“The Judiciary – We know that the public will agree with us that that the PDP left a stronger Judiciary which the APC is discrediting with impunity as it flouts court orders at will.”